The Apprentice's Quest
200px |author=Cherith BaldryRevealed on Kate's blog |cover artist=Owen Richardson |isbn=ISBN 9780062386373 |editions=Hardcover, Library Edition, e-book, Paperback |publish date=15 March 2016Revealed on HarperCollins |Summary=''Coming soon'' |preceded=''Bramblestar's Storm, ''Hawkwing's Journey |followed= Hawkwing's Journey, Thunder and Shadow |summary = Alderpaw, son of Bramblestar, must go on a perilous journey far beyond the lake territories to uncover a cryptic prophecy that might change the future of the warrior Clans forever. }} The Apprentice's Quest is the first bookRevealed on Kate's blog of the sixth arc, titled A Vision of Shadows.Revealed on Kate's blog Dedication :Special thanks to Cherith Baldry The Blurb :Embrace what you find in the shadows, for only they can clear the sky. :For many moons, the warrior cats have lived in peace in their territories around the lake. But a dark shadow looms on the horizon, and the time has come for one young cat to shape his destiny—and the fate of all the warrior Clans. :Alderpaw, the son of the ThunderClan leader, Bramblestar, is eager to find his place in Clan life. When he begins having strange dreams—visions that can only have been sent by the warrior ancestors in StarClan—Bramblestar names him apprentice to the Clan’s medicine cat. But the omens in Alderpaw’s dreams will soon send him away from everything he has ever known on a quest to ensure the Clans’ survival. :The warrior cat Clans have enjoyed many moons of peace and prosperity—but a dark season approaches, and those days will soon be over. Guided by a mysterious vision, the young apprentice Alderpaw of ThunderClan must go on a dangerous journey . . . a journey that may be the Clans' only hope. DELETED BECAUSE OF SPOILERS! YOU ARE WELCOME! MAY STARCLAN LIGHT YOUR PATH!☆☆ Bonus Scene :Squirrelflight awakes late in Bramblestar's den on the Highledge. With guilt flashing in her, she realizes that the patrols had already been organized and were long gone by the time she had awoken. Although she feels awful about it, she knows that it's because she's a queen and is expecting kits. She reflects on how the two medicine cats, Leafpool and Jayfeather, had been attempting to persuade her to move to the nursery, but to no avail as Squirrelflight had insisted that she had wanted to hang onto her duties as deputy as long as she possibly could. Due to the fact that she is in a lot of pain, she sits down and remembers her reaction when she had figured out she had been expecting kits. She remembers her overwhelming feelings of excitement and joy, and how they had completely overriden feelings of nervousness. But as days pass and the kits grow, her nervousness gets the better of her, weighing her down, making it almost impossible to do anything. :She leaves Bramblestar's den to check how the patrols are getting along. She goes over to the fresh-kill pile, seeing Cherryfall sharing a vole with Snowbush and Berrynose. Cherryfall offers her some of the mouse, and Berrynose tries to persuade her to eat it. Squirrelflight is hungry, but remembers that all of ThunderClan is hungry because it is leaf-bare. She feels guilty, as she thinks she is eating more than her fair share. As she thinks whether to eat or not, she reflects on how much pain she is. The thought of pain leads her to recalling about the kits she had fostered - Hollyleaf, Jayfeather, and Lionblaze. She ponders if she was a good mother to them, remembering how after the truth had been revealed, it had taken a long time for her to be forgiven. Snowbush gets in the way of her thoughts and convinces her to eat, and Berrynose adds that it's mouse-brained she won't eat. Squirrelflight snaps back at him, her short temper getting the best of her. Cherryfall tells her that it's good for her and the kits if she eats. The argument continues, with Cherryfall, Snowbush, and Berrynose trying to convince her to eat, with Squirrelflight refusing. Eventually, Squirrelflight gives in. :Jayfeather checks in on her, and Squirrelflight looks into the eyes of her foster son, thinking that maybe everything would be okay. As Jayfeather collects alder bark, Squirrelflight accidentally rams into him, thinking that ice above him would fall and hurt him. Jayfeather snaps at her, saying that he doesn't need her to protect him. Squirrelflight stares at him, offended, remembering that the tension of their past lives - the way she had raised Jayfeather and his siblings - was hanging between them. Jayfeather tells her he can take care of himself, and walks away. Squirrelflight feels guilty, not knowing if she can be a good mother if she can't even stop arguing with her Clanmates. :Bramblestar and Squirrelflight go on a hunting patrol together, and Bramblestar tells her that she hasn't been herself lately. Squirrelflight tells her that she's scared she wouldn't be a good mother, and she asks if she was a good mother to Hollyleaf, Lionblaze, and Jayfeather. Bramblestar is quiet, and Squirrelflight hinks back to how furious Bramblestar was when he first found out. Bramblestar calls her a stupid furball, and tells her that she loved the three kits she raised with her heart, and they turned into three amazing cats. He tells her that no other she-cat can be a better mother than she will, and he'll always be with her. :Squirrelflight chases a mouse, but accidentally runs into a fox. Bramblestar comes to her aid and battles the fox along with her. Bramblestar gets pinned down, but Squirrelflight ends up saving his life by defeating the fox, sending it retreating. Bramblestar thanks her for saving him, and Bramblestar confesses that he thought the fox would get her, and that he would lose her and her kits. Squirrelflight tells him that she couldn't let the fox hurt him, not when she could fight besides him. The two twine their tails, and Squirreflight thinks that they are so much stronger together, and that they will make sure their kits are loved and safe. Bramblestar and Squirrelflight travel back to camp, but Squirrelflight feels better. She thinks that being a mother isn't about saying the right thing or doing the right thing, but being a mother means protecting the cats you care about. And Squirrelflight knows she is capable of doing just this - for the rest of her life. Trivia *The Barnes & Noble exclusive scene features Squirrelflight as deputy of ThunderClan, not long before she has her kits. The book does not feature a preview for Thunder and Shadow in lieu of this, however. This is a Barnes & Noble-exclusive preview, and does not exist in other copies of the book. As of current, the exclusive edition is not available online.Revealed on Barnes & Noble's website *While a cat named 'Ferntail' appears in the allegiance list preview for The Apprentice's Quest on Kate's blog,Kate's blog no such character exists in the final printing of the book. Publication List *''The Apprentice's Quest'' (EN), HarperCollins (Hardcover), 15 March 2016Revealed on HarperCollins' website *''The Apprentice's Quest'' (EN), HarperCollins (e-book), 15 March 2016Revealed on HarperCollins' website *''The Apprentice's Quest'' (EN), HarperCollins (Library), 15 March 2016Revealed on HarperCollins' website *''The Apprentice's Quest'' (EN), HarperCollins (Paperback), 11 April 2017Revealed on HarperCollins' website * Die Mission des Schülers (DE), Verlagsgruppe Beltz (hardcover), 30 January 2017Revealed on Beltz See Also *Allegiances *Character List *Chapter-by-Chapter Notes *Book Cover Gallery References and Citations de:The Apprentice's Questfr:The Apprentice's Questzh:学徒探索ru:Испытание оруженосца Category:Books Category:The Apprentice's Quest Category:A Vision of Shadows Arc